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The Menorah – Prophetic Tabernacle Plan – Celestial Symbolism

History of Biblical Astronomy — The Menorah

The Menorah

The cosmology of the Hebrew Menorah is an important topic to understand when it comes to the celestial symbolism of God’s divine prophetic plan for His Tabernacle and Temple in the Old Testament. The Menorah embodies the pattern of seven seen in the Creator’s Temporal order, beginning with the Creation Week, and extending through the pattern of seven year Sabbaths, leading to Pentecost and Hebrew Jubilee. We also find this plan in 7 Administrations, or ages of time that God set up from the beginning. The Creator spun the stars and planets in their heavenly orbits to reflect His universal pattern of growth life as seen in the phi ratio, and the Fibonacci number series to rule over the four seasons and the sacred rhythms of all life. As these stellar cycles dictate the Creator’s Temporal order in Nature, humanity can join in the flow of the Song of Creation in the circadian rhythms of life, as we grow and change through the seasons of Life. God has promised to keep these seasons turning as part of His covenant with Noah after the Great Flood, [Gen. 8:22]. The Cosmology of the
Menorah is a key aspect of the plan of the Tabernacle, depicting the heavenly order of our solar system based on the principles of the phi ratio. This comes to light mainly in Revelation 1:10-20 below, where Christ stands at its center, embodying the Sun of our solar system holding seven stars in his right hand.

God designed the plans and blueprints of the earthly Temple and Tabernacle based on the only original version of His Heavenly Temple, [Rev. 11:19]. Hebrews 9:11-12 also tells us that the heavenly Temple is the center of worship of the Creator and True God, and also where the godly angels minister to the One True God, [Ps 104:3-4]. In the graphic below we see the structure of the Tabernacle with its Outer and Inner Courts subdividing the double-square blue-print, based on the phi-ratio. The Interior of the Tabernacle was divided into two squares, the outer square was called the Holy Place, while the inner Square was a perfect cube, called the Holiest of All, containing the Ark of the Covenant. In the Holy place was found the Table of Shewbread, where its 12 loaves of Shewbread were placed, relating to the 12 tribes of Israel, symbolized in 12 precious stones of the High Priest’s Breastplate as he ministered to the nation of Israel in the Old Testament. We find this pattern mirrored in the heavens with the 12 major signs of the zodiac containing the celestial prophecies, and also in the New Testament as Christ chose 12 Apostles to minister to his church, along with the “seven angels of the seven churches.”

As we have seen in the number symbolism already pointed out in related studies, the number 120 continues to appear in key contexts. For example, the Holy Place in Solomon’s Temple had 10 Tables of Shewbread, each with 12 loaves, [10×12=120]. This is mirrored in New Jerusalem with 12 foundations of precious stones, also with the same number of 12 pearls, angels and apostles. This number symmetry is reflected in the Book of Revelation, in the New Jerusalem whose dimensions are 12,000 furlongs square, with a wall of 144 cubits, whose human residents number 144,000, [120 x 1200]. Added to the Table of Shewbread in the inner court, were the Golden Altar and the Menorah. Even as there were 10 Shewbread tables in Solomon’s Temple, so his Temple also held 10 smaller Menorah’s, each with 7 candlesticks [7×10=70 lamps], so there were 70 souls from Jacob’s loins [Ex. 1:5] multiplied as the stars of Heaven [Gen. 15:4-6, Deut. 10:22]. This number symmetry extends to the 70 elders ruling Israel, known as the Sanhedrin, and the 70 Sabbath years Jerusalem kept while Judah was in Babylon, [Jer. 35:11]. This carries to Judgement on Jerusalem of 70, 7’s completing its transgressions, to bring in everlasting righteousness, [Dan. 9:24]. This is mirrored in the NT as Jesus also chose 70 Disciples to spread his gospel, [Lk. 10:17].

God’s instructions to Moses regarding the Menorah are set in Exodus 25:

Exodus 25:31-40
31 And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold: of beaten work shall the candlestick be made: his shaft, and his branches, his bowls, his knops, and his flowers, shall be of the same. 32 And six branches shall come out of the sides of it; three branches of the candlestick out of the one side, and three branches of the candlestick out of the other side: 33 Three bowls made like almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick. 34 And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like almonds, with their knops and their flowers. 35 And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick. 36 Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure gold. 37 And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it. 38 And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold. 39 Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels. 40 And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.

Verse 37 indicates the purpose of the Menorah lamps, “that they may give light…’ It is noteworthy that this is the same purpose of the heavenly luminaries stated in Genesis 1:14-16. Interestingly, the word for “lights” in the firmament, [Gen. 1:14, 16: *H216-maor] is the same word used in reference to the lamps of the Menorah, (Exodus 20:27, 35:14). Moreover, the same Hebrew word referring to the Menorah’s individual lamps, also refers to the individual heavenly lights of the Sun and Moon in Gen. 1:16. So we see perfect relation between the purpose of the individual celestial cycles and the individual lamps of the candlestick, to shed light upon the Earth. The emphasis with a Sun-centered system is placed on the Light of God. God’s Light is the Source of Life on Earth, even as God is the Source of Light. The geometric structure of the Menorah reveals intricate details as we take a deeper look into the 3 Knops, 3 flowers and 3 Bowls on each of the branches off the central Menorah shaft. [Ex. 25:33] tells us of 3 bowls made like almonds, each with a Knob and Flower blossom on all 6 branches, showing [3x3x3=9] ornaments on each branch times 3 branches=27 on each side of the central Servant Branch [27×2=54], added to the 12 ornaments on the central branch [54+12=66]. Numerically this is interesting because there are 27 O.T. books in the Bible, and a total of 66 books in the entire Bible. Since the Bible embodies all Scriptural light for Mankind, as a lamp unto our feet, [Ps. 119:105] it is a fitting truth. These numbers appear again related to certain heavenly cycles below, also mirrored in the 9 full series of colored curtains of Cherubim, each of 27 cubits on the Tabernacle’s internal walls. It is interesting to note an correlation of these numbers to the internal and external measurements of the Tabernacle. The internal measures were 12 cubits wide by 29.5 cubits long. This links to the Luni-Solar cycle of 12 lunar months, with a 29.5308-day, lunar synodic month, [29 43/81 days]. The Tabernacle’s external measures were 30 cubits long by 12 1/3 cubits wide. The 12 1/3 cubits translates to 12.368 lunar synodic months per solar year [12 7/19] harmonizing with the luni-solar cycle 12/30 day months according to the Phi ratio, over the 50-year Jubilee period.

tabernacle plan menorah — Hebrew Menorah Mosaic

Revelation 1:10-20
10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, 11 Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What you see, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia; to Ephesus, and Smyrna, and Pergamos, and Thyatira, and Sardis, and Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. 12 And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; 13 And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. 14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; 15 And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. 16 And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. 17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last: 18 I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. 19 Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter; 20 The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

Verses 12-16 above relate the description of the “Son of Man” as the one in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks, shining as the Sun in his strength, [v.16]. This identifies the Sun, personified in Jesus Christ, [Mal. 4:2] holding seven stars, shining in the center of the seven branches of the candlestick. These seven heavenly luminaries are associated with the angels of the seven churches in Rev. 1:20. Here God’s Word draws a direct comparison, first, between the Sun in the center of the Candlestick, embodied in Jesus Christ. This sets the context wherein we can understand the symbolism of the other branches of the Menorah. Secondly, the angels of the seven churches are embodied in Seven Stars held in Jesus Christ’s right hand. At this point, we should notice the mythological roots of planetary symbolism, how the planets Mercury–Gabriel, Mars-Michael, Saturn-Satan and the Sun and light of the world–Jesus Christ, also called the Covenant Angel named Wonderful, [Judg 13:18], are linked with these stars.

In Revelation 10:16 the word for “stars” in reference to the seven stars held in Jesus’ right hand in the Greek is the word “aster“ [*G792]. This word is used in reference to both angels and to heavenly bodies whether fixed or wandering stars, like the planet Jupiter [Matt. 2:2, 7, 9 & 10]. Matt. 2:2 is especially interesting in this light because here the Magi address the first question of the New Testament; “Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east and are come to worship him.”

As we have seen, Jupiter is proven as the star of the Messiah, and as the King planet, it is prominently mentioned by the Magi as identifying Jesus as the King of the Jews. Another Biblical title of the Messiah correlating to a stellar identity, is Jesus as the Morning Star, (Rev. 2:28, 22:16). This relates to the planet Venus, seen in it’s morning and evening star appearances. This title of the Morning Star only occurs one other place in God’s Word, (Isa. 14:12), in reference to Lucifer, while still in his angelic first estate. As the 1st bright and Morning Star, Lucifer was second only to God in authority, but his dominion over the angelic realm was stripped from him when iniquity was found in him, in his attempted coup’ in heaven. Christ has superseded him as the new Morning Star, and Lucifer’s former authority over the archangels Michael and Gabriel was transferred to Christ, who is seated at the right hand of the Father. Since Christ Jesus supersedes Lucifer’s original ministry as the Bright and Morning Star, the planet Venus symbolizes both an angelic and spiritual dominion as the “Covenant Angel named Wonderful,” [Judges 13:18]. This Covenant Angel whose name was not revealed, but kept secret at that point in the Old Testament, because as part of the mystery of Jesus’ future angelic dominion, had the princes of this world, or the operatives of the fallen Satan gotten wind of it, they never would have crucified the Lord of Glory, (I Cor. 2:8). This Hebrew word for “wonderful” [*H6382] also appears in the famous prophecy of Christ in Isaiah 9:6, describing him as a wonderful or miraculous Counselor. Those who follow his counsel will partake in the supernatural signs and wonders that are produced from belief in his Words. Even the Scribes and Pharisees called him Rabbi, [Jn. 6:25] so God’s Word recognizes Christ as a Marvelous Teacher, even as the Archangel Gabriel is named when delivering God’s messages unto men.

It is thus interesting that heavenly signs involving the planet Venus are included in the signs leading up to the Blood Moon Tetrad 0f 2014-2015. A Venus transit and a Total Solar eclipse, took place in 2012, as these events were prophesied in Mayan Astrology. On the 5th & 6th of June 2012, there was a Venus transit, along with a Solar eclipse on the eve of November 13th, both important dates on the Tzolkin Calendar of the Maya, foretelling these events over a 1000 years ago! This Solar Eclipse was one of two triads of Solar eclipses framing the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-2015, as singular heavenly beacons and signposts marking this Blood Moon Tetrad with particular emphasis. Venus transits many times occur in pairs, eight years apart. The last one happened in 2004, paired with the recent one in 2012, which appeared between the horns of Taurus, the Bull. Biblically, Taurus symbolizes the lord returning in judgment on mankind with his horns set to pierce and destroy his enemies. This marked the Mayan Acopcalypse, which as we all know did not happen exactly the way they predicted. It is however, instructive to realize what really goes on with a Venus Transit, since we won’t be seeing another one for quite a while. The graphic below depicts an example of the phi ratio geometry manifested in the fibonacci number series as it relates to Venus Transits, and the celestial dynamics of our solar system.

Venus Transits 2004 / 2012 — Venus Transit Pentagon

In the Almighty’s Intelligent Design of Creation, examples of golden section Symmetry embodied in phi ratio patterns abound in our solar system. They are God’s geometric finger prints indicating the pattern of natural growth-life, which only God can originate as the True Source of all living things. The Earth-the garden home of Man, abounds with examples of phi Symmetry in all Four Kingdoms of life. A beautiful illustration of this is found first in a comparison of Venus-Earth orbits. The 2 planets orbit the Sun in a phi ratio, harmony, depicted above in a geometic pentagonal pattern. Since their mean orbital distances link to [1+1/phi²]:1.⁵The phi ratio relationship is also found in Venus’ closest and furthest distances from the Earth, defined as [phi⁴ :1] to 99.99% accuracy, which are depicted as two 5-pointed stars, one within the other!⁶Also when the 5 triangles associated with these stars are nested together, we find Golden Spirals emerging, as seen in the nautilus spirals at the center of galactic swirls millions of light years in diameter, forming the pattern of numerous spiral galaxies. Additionally, Venus forms a beautiful 5-petalled flower around the Earth every 8 years, equivalent to 13 Venus years, revealing the Fibonacci series [5:8:13] based on the phi ratio, ordering Space-Time planetary orbits in our solar system.⁷ This five-pointed star whose segments relate to phi, are also found in Nature for example in the center of an apple. Only the Creator’s Hand working in His handiworks can account for this symmetric beauty underlying all Creation, since “random chance” most assuredly cannot.

The actual celestial scene referred to in the Mayan doomsday astrology is pictured below on 12/21/2012. Our view as we take an approach from Biblical Astronomy provides the wisdom of God’s Word applied to the message of the heavens, leading up to the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-2015. This sets a general context of the victorious return of Jesus Christ as prophesied by the Blood Moons and Solar eclipses referenced by the Prophet Joel.

Ophiuchus’ battle versus his enemy is pictured in this Constellation group as Scorpio and Serpens. This gives us an example of taking a composite view to glean the truth from these celestial signs. Man’s struggle for dominion against the serpent is highlighted by the temporary wound the serpent inflicts on him, as shown by the scorpion’s stinging of his heel [Gen. 3:15]. The star picture of this initial prophecy of the promised seed cannot be fully grasped, unless we take a composite view of this celestial scene [Ophiuchus, Serpens, Corona Sagittarius & Scorpius]. The same can be said of the four serpents in the sky, where the function and mode of operation of the evil one is concerned. A Biblical view of these celestial signs focused on the galactic center of the Milky Way Galaxy, is best understood as a representation of Genesis 3:15.

The graphic below from the Voyager¹⁷Astronomy program depicts the sky on this predicted date for the end of the world, based on the Mayan Astrology. The primary components of the scene are Sagittarius, embodying the returning Lord Jesus Christ, riding his flying white steed in ultimate victory in the spiritual warfare against the dragon and his brood, represented by Scorpius the scorpion. The Sun is centered at the tip of Sagittaruis” arrow which is aimed at the red star Antares, the heart of the Scorpion, as its being crushed from above by the foot of Ophiuchus, revealing the light of the world shining his inescapable light on the kingdom of darkness, totally exposing the evil works of the enemy while conquering and laying waste to them all.

Bruising the enemy's head — The Second Coming of Christ

As The Sun of God arises here with healing in his wings, the light of the world is pictured at the heel of Ophiuchus. This is the heel wound inflicted by the Scorpion, but his sacrificial death was not only temporary, but also the most liberating act mankind has ever experienced, since it was this singular sacrifice of Christ, that freed all mankind from the slavery and tyranny of the Adversary. This loving sacrifice that fulfilled the Father’s masterplan to redeem mankind, was faithfully and obediently carried out by Jesus Christ, resulting in the
deadly wound he inflicts on the serpent. This image of Jesus as the great healer of all our wounds, as he delivers us with his perfect sacrifice, that only he could offer as the innocent blood and perfect man, is the ideal image to broadcast on the celestial showcase, leading up to the crescendo of the Victorious Second Coming of our Conquering Lord and Savior. As the Bible tells us in Joel 2:31 these celestial signs of the Blood Moon and Solar eclipses will occur before this great and notable day of the Lord comes to pass…

As we uncover the spiritual context of the celestial signs surrounding the prophecies of Joel, we are awakened to some of the deeper truths surrounding the Blood Moon Tetrad of 2014-2015. Taken in the context of the series of Blood Moon Tetrads over the last 2000 years in ther history of Israel, we cannot help but notice a pattern emerging for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear and discern the signs of the end of days, leading to the victorious return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Footnotes

Strongs Concordance to the Bible was utilized for Greek and Hebrew Word definitions.

All Scriptural references are taken from the KJV unless otherwise stated.

The Four Kingdoms of Life

The golden section in God’s mathematical Design of the Natural Order

“Mathematical truth is not determined arbitrarily by the rules of some man-made formal system, but has an absolute nature…”

-Roger Penrose

“…mathematics is the loom upon which God weaves the fabric of the universe.”

-Clifford Pickover

While reviewing the question of the nature of reality from a mathematical viewpoint G.H. Hardy stated:

“A man who could give a convincing account of mathematical reality would have solved very many of the most difficult problems of meta-Physics. If he could include physical reality in his account, he would have solved them all. I should not wish to argue any of these questions here even if I were competent to do so, but I will state my own position dogmatically in order to avoid minor misapprehensions. I believe that mathematical reality lies outside us, that our function is to discover or observe it, and that the theorems which we prove, and which we describe grandiloquently as our “creations,” are simply our notes of our observations. This view has been held, in one form or another, from Plato onwards…”

Romans 1:19-22

19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse. 21 Because that when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise they became fools, 23 And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things…

Romans 1:19-20 [Amplified Bible]

19 For that which is known about God is evident to them and made plain in their inner consciousness,
because God [Himself] has shown it to them. 20 For ever since the creation of the world His
invisible nature and attributes, that is, His eternal power and divinity, have been made intelligible and clearly discernible in and through the things that have been made (His handiworks). So men are without excuse [altogether without any defense or justification].¹
[Ps. 19:1-4]

Introduction

This section of the Try-God web-site focuses on some examples of the principles, tools and patterns God utilized in the order of His Creation. The Creator is The God of Order, and as some leading modern thinkers have stated above, the absolute nature of mathematical truth is a major area where we witness the Almighty Hand of God working in His Creation. Adhering to the themes expressed by these renown scientists, mathematicians, and the Apostle Paul above, we can identify and investigate the inherent Symmetry, which constitutes a primary element in the Creator’s Intelligent Design, as a witness and expression of His Omnipotent Hand. As God is perfect, so is His divine order inherent in His Word and His Works. Any honest study of these mathematical laws and principles must begin with man’s recognition of his true place under the ultimate sovereignty of the Creator, and the Omnipotent power that God wielded in His Acts of Creation. Those who take the view that these laws originate with man, or by “chance” will never pierce the veil of their own self-aggrandizing theories, or plumb the depths of truth that the Heavenly Father has set in the Natural Order. Science alone has already revealed in the laws of causality and Einstein’s Relativity Theory, that the answers to the First Cause are not found in doctrines of Materialism, but must be Supernatural in origin. [read more]

At its best, human science believes perhaps that its greatest and highest purpose is to search for Nature’s patterns of order–the deep mathematical regularities that can be found in natural forms. It is evident that Nature has a code deeply imprinted symmetrically at its core, but to understand it more fully, along with the Creator, we must look to God’s Word first, from which Natural Law itself emerged. If we are to more fully recognize the key patterns of symmetrical beauty and the arithmetical perfection of God’s created Works, we must rely on God’s Word first and foremost, as the exemplary pattern of created perfection. These patterns give us a blueprint to compare God’s Words with His Works, providing the greatest witness of His Omniscient power. In support of this view, Archbishop Trent profoundly states in his work, Notes on The Parables:

“Analogies from the natural world…are arguments, and may be called as witnesses, the world of Nature being throughout a witness of the world of spirit, proceeding from the same Hand, growing from the same root, and being constituted for the same end. All lovers of truth readily acknowledge these mysterious harmonies, and the force of arguments derived from them. To them the things on Earth are copies of the things in Heaven.”¹¹
As we investigate the realms of life in the Natural World, we find that they divide generally into four major kingdoms of terrestrial life: Plant, Animal and Human, with the Spiritual dimension as the basis of them all. Archbishop Trent’s reference above points out that biological life forms reflect the principles governing the Kingdoms of Life, which find their origin in the realm of the Spirit. This is a key to revealing God’s Intelligent Design of the Works of His Hands. This key is seen also applied in how both the golden section and Fibonacci Series govern the growth of life forms from the micro to the macro, an indication of Symmetry and beauty in God’s Creation [Rom. 1:19-20].

Our challenge is: if we identify and apprehend key elements of the perfect symmetrical design that God employed in His divine order of the four Kingdoms of Life, then we can expect to see these Symmetry principles of at work in other aspects of His Natural Order also. As we focus on the key numerical patterns which we find throughout the Natural Order, this can give us a broad panoramic view of the “mathematical exactness and scientific precision” inherent in other aspects of God’s Works. As we search for these corresponding perfect patterns, in related aspects of the Four Kingdoms of Life [Ps. 8:3-9], (Plant, Animal, Human, Spiritual) then we can gain Biblical insights into each of these kingdoms, under the overall sovereignty of the Kingdom of God, bearing the fingerprints of the Creator’s Perfect Hand, even as God’s Word “engraved in the Celestial order” does. The Kingdom of God depicts in its the various elements, categories and kingdoms of life in His creation, His eternal and omnipotent power, the visible revealing the invisible as a perfectly ordered manifestation of His divine wisdom.

The focus of this study emphasizes the Plant and Human kingdoms of Life, as they are revealed in God’s Word, while briefly touching on the Animal and Spiritual Kingdoms. These topics will be more fully developed in forthcoming published works, available in the near future. To begin to get a perspective on some important elements of the order of Creation from a mathematical viewpoint, we need to define some terms. At the outset, a distinction must be made in two categories of numerical order. The first is Cardinal Numbers and the second is Ordinal Numbers. To get a clearer idea of this distinction from a Biblical viewpoint let’s look at a discourse God had with Abraham. The record we will scrutinize is found in Genesis 15, [cp. Gen. 13:16, 22:17, 32:12]

Genesis 15:1-6 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward. 2 And Abram said, Lord God what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus? 3 And Abram said, Behold, to me Thou hast given no seed: and lo, one born in my house is mine heir. 4 And behold, the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. 5 And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and He said unto him, So shall thy seed be. 6 And he believed in the Lord; and He counted it to him for righteousness.

When God told Abraham to “tell the stars, if thou be able to number them,” do you think He wanted him to get out his abacus and parchment and start counting the stars one by one? Or perhaps God was referring to the promise of the innumerable abundance of Abraham’s posterity, since he was to be the father of believers? Another possibility is God might have been referring to the inherent celestial order that He first revealed to Adam, who taught it to the rest of the Biblical Patriarchs that followed him. Or maybe God wanted Abram to pay attention to the timekeeping aspects of the stars as he numbered them. There is certainly much more to this record than what tradition holds, as we consider it thoughtfully, from its various aspects. The main key to unlocking the truth in this record lies in avoiding private interpretation and allowing God’s Word to speak for itself. In this process of allowing God to speak through His revealed Word in this record, we should take note of the figure of speech polysyndetyn, or many (12) and’s, which emphasizes each aspect of the verses above, separated by the connective “and’s.“²
Sometimes it helps to get our bearings in the study of Scripture by asking questions, as we have above, related to the usual list of: What, Where, Why, When, How and Who? In the final analysis, when we allow God’s Word to have preeminence, it will reveal its meaning in the details. We have outlined in a general sense, the principles of Biblical Interpretation in the “Research Principles” of our Reference Section here in the Try-God website. Let’s take a closer look at some of the words divinely utilized in this section of God’s Word.

The word for “tell” in verse 5, is the Bible’s first usage of the Hebrew word caphar [H5608], meaning to “inscribe, celebrate, narrate, tell, make known, or praise.” It also carries the meaning of “a scribe, or writer, when used in reference to a person.”³ This word is used in Psalm 19:1; rendered “declare” in the KJV; as The Heavens declare the glory of God… [Psalm 97:6]. God was telling Abram to look up at the heavens and recount, declare, or narrate the truth revealed in the celestial gospel, if he could. Abram not only did this accurately and well enough to please God, but he also realized that despite the physical impossibility of child-bearing at Abram and Sarah’s advanced ages, he saw that the promised seed, prophesied in the stars would come forth out of his own loins. For Abram’s acts of believing, “God counted [H2803] it to him as he was righteous.” This is the foundation for salvation by faith in the N.T. [Rom. 4:17-22], because God not only mercifully with held the wrathful judgement we deserve due to sin, but He also freely shares the Grace of His righteousness with us, which we do not deserve.

The Word for “counted” in verse 6 above is chashab in Hebrew meaning to reckon or esteem, meditate, combine or devise.⁴It is also an accounting term used in the context of the 7th Sabbath of years and the sacred 50-year Jubilee system of timekeeping in ancient Israel [Lev. 25:27, 50-52, 27:18, 23]. The Levitical Law shows us both cardinal and ordinal applications of “counting,” in this record, but it does not portray them as interchangeable terms. As we will see from its Biblical usage in this record, the ordinal meaning of a number includes much more than just the numerical sequence where a particular number occurs in a series. We will find numerous examples of this especially where God utilizes the phi ratio in His organization of Creation.

God’s statement to Abram builds on an earlier promise in Genesis 13:16, where God would make his “seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered.” This earlier promise from God to Abram established a relationship between Abram’s seed, or offspring, in the earth, while this later promise in Gen. 15:5 connects Abram’s seed with the stars.

The Hebrew word for “number“-(ed), “manah” [*H4487], means to “divide into parts, arrange, allot or assign, appoint, or order.”⁵ Here we can begin to see the difference between what mathematics categorizes as the function of Ordinal Numbers, that specify the order and succession in the elements or hierarchy of a group, as opposed to Cardinal Numbers, that refer simply to counting individual parts. In our recognition of both mathematical categories here, related to the Bible’s first usage of the Hebrew words “caphar” and “manah,” we find on one level, that regarding the innumerable posterity of his seed, God was showing Abram, simple counting of parts with Cardinal numbers, compared with the organization of Abram’s seed in groups, specifically the 12 tribes of Israel as they relate to both the 12 signs of the celestial order, and Ordinal Numbers. As we consider the context of both promises to Abram in Genesis 13 and 15, we find God showing Abram, a base 60 numerical order applied to numbering the stars, would also be applied to ordering his seed! This is one basis of the relation between the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 celestial signs of the zodiac, recorded later in Genesis 49, [Num. 2] regarding the 12 sons of his grandson Jacob. This order is founded on the basis of the figurative Tree of Life, both in the Garden of Eden, in Original Paradise, in Genesis and in Final Paradise in the Book of Revelation [Rev. 22:2]. The celestial order reflected in the Tree of Life is only one level of truth reflected in the Human Kingdom of Life, whose number pattern reflecting God’s celestial order in Abraham’s seed, is also mirrored in the breastplate of the High Priest, as we have documented in our article on the Celestial Symbolism of Israel’s Temple and Tabernacle. The order in which the twelve tribes camped around the Tabernacle during the 40 years that Moses lead Israel through the wilderness, mirrors the same pattern found in the arrangement of the 12 jewels on the breastplate of the High Priest. As the high priest after the order of Melchisedek [Gen. 14:18], Jesus inherited his double square breast-plate of 12 precious stones, structured according to the phi ratio symbolizing the authority of the Lion of the Tribe of Judah as Priest-King over Israel’s twelve (4 x 3) tribes
[Ex. 28:15-30]. Below is an example of the 12 major signs of the zodiac as they are found on the ecliptic, relating to the 12 tribes of Israel, which is also a poster available in our bookstore.

Since we are discussing the Creator’s ordained structural categories providing the foundation of a Bible based approach to the Philosophy of Knowledge, as it is laid out in God’s Covenants with Man through Abraham, it would be remiss if we did not recognize the significance of the phi ratio as it relates to this very significant and instructive subject matter. In the context of our conversation, the phi ratio would be classified as a type of ordinal group-an infinite mathematical series. By their very nature, infinite mathematical series are abstract and theoretical because we do not find them progressing to infinity in the concrete physical world of our five senses “reality.” This is not to say that the phi ratio does not occur in Nature. We will see more evidence how God has chosen to pattern the growth of all Four Kingdoms of Life in Creation, after the numerical dictates of the phi ratio series. This is a profound lesson in itself, because God is telling us that: The Only Infinite God is the Source of All Life, ordering His Kingdoms of Life by an infinite mathematical series, [John. 1:3-4, Jas. 1:17-18]. This also sets up the “physical reality” as opposed to the “mathematical reality,” referred to in G.H. Hardy’s quote at the opening of this study. The Almighty is certainly “competent” to discuss the parameters of these matters, where Hardy, in his humility did not feel himself up to the task. As we have found, the growth patterns of the Plant, Animal and Human Kingdoms of Life progress through their preordained stages of growth, via the mathematical dictates of the phi ratio, we witness the Creator’s Intelligent design in application. There are also examples in God’s Word where Spiritual growth follows the dictates of this phi pattern.

When we are born into this world, our physical body grows as it passes through its ordained finite life stages. But with our Spiritual New Birth, we are set on an everlasting path of an infinite living and loving relationship with our Heavenly Father, through His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Here we find a life that begins as a representation of a finite series, but never ends like its physical counterpart. Our physical body becomes a Holy Temple that houses our sacred everlasting spirit, until we inherit our new bodies at the Lord’s Return. Thus, as we follow the path of light into way of holiness that God sets before us, we embody the infinite series that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ still lives, as an example for us to follow. His perfect example shows us how his authority not only includes the original power of the fallen Morning Star, who presided over ten categories of precious stones, or angels, in the First Heavens and Earth [Ezek. 28:13], but also that of the Risen Morning Star, presiding over 12 categories of precious stones, representing the 12 tribes of Israel, in the breastplate of Israel’s High Priest, the 12 signs of the zodiac, and later also the 12 apostles at the foundations of the Grace Administration, along with the 12 foundations of the New Jerusalem.

In keeping with the celestial symbolism theme, the High Priest’s breastplate, was divinely designed with a compartment which held the Urim and Thummim, or lights and perfections; representing the two great lights, the Sun and Moon. As oracles of the High Priest, these two stones revealed the wisdom and glory of the Creator by lot, even as the heavens declare the glory of God in their numerical order [Ps. 19:1], whose glory is revealed in the cycles of the Sun, Moon and Stars of the zodiac. This was a primary means whereby the High Priest could get revelation from God by using the precious stones of his “ephod,” relating to the celestial cycles of the Sun and Moon. Any question posed by the man of God, would be answered either in the affirmative or negative by one of these two stones. Another method God could talk to the High Priest involved the use of the 12 precious stones, corresponding to the Stars, which were interpreted and understood Biblically, according to the 12 signs of the zodiac. As the Priest “cast lots” utilizing one of these methods, the Wisdom and Will of the Heavenly Father was revealed. A detailed study of the principles governing the rule of these two great lights, over day and night [Gen. 1:14-17], preserved in Israel’s luni-solar Calendar, is seen in The Calendar of the Biblical Patriarchs article of our website. As Israel’s calendar shows the perfect correlation of the sacred cycles of the Sabbatical and Jubilee, harmonizing with the secular aspects of the celestial cycles governing the Rhythms of a myriad terrestrial and cosmic cycles, we find more evidence of both the cardinal and ordinal use of number in Scripture, regarding the timekeeping practices of the Biblical Patriarchs. In these practices we see the dominion of God’s light reflected in the heavens and ruling over all the kingdoms of terrestrial life [Gen. 1:14-17]. These fundamental life cycles reflected in the celestial order, depict the divine Canon of Creation and the Science of the Creator, which was symbolized in the architecture of the Temple and Tabernacle of Israel, and the Great Pyramid. This dual standard of sacred and secular order is unified in Jesus Christ as the High Priest-King of Israel. We find more references to the 12 stones and their variants in the “living stones” of I Pet. 2:4-7, and the 12 foundations of the New Jerusalem; [Rev. 21:19-20]. Here we find a unified witness of the 12 tribes of Israel bringing forth the promised seed unto the New Jerusalem, in unity with the “heavens declaring the glory of God,” the witness of the 12 signs of the zodiac. We will see more aspects of this Tree of Life as our study progresses.